Race for top slot in public sector banks hots up

KOLKATA: The race for the top slot in public sector banks (PSBs) is likely to be more intense in 2010. As many as 10 PSB chiefs will retire in the course of the next 10-11 months and the finance ministry has decided to broaden its search by including senior executives from State Bank of India (SBI) and its associate banks in the fray. It has also relaxed some key selection parameters to accommodate more senior bankers in the list of probable candidates.

The ministry has shortlisted 21 very senior bankers, including four from the SBI group, three from financial institutions like Export Import Bank of India and Nabard and other executive directors from the PSB pool.

"The decision to broaden the search is an inevitable one since the banks' top deck is witnessing a serious vacuum following widescale retirement," a former bank managing director told ET.

The latest finance ministry move has, however, sparked off a fresh controversy. A section of bank executives, it is learnt, did not take the move too kindly. "They have raised their voices against the inclusion of executives from SBI and FIs in the interviewee list and relaxation of some selection parameters," said a senior banker, who was invited for the interview.

Normally, SBI-ites had so far not been considered for the top slot in other PSBs, barring a few exception. In recent times, SBI's Yogesh Agarwal's selection as IDBI Bank chief can be seen as an exception.

So far as the selection criteria goes, the requisite period left in career has been reduced to one year and six months from two years earlier. Again EDs with a minimum one year's experience used to be shortlisted previously. Now, this has also been eased to six months.

Incidentally, the ministry has already notified Dena Bank ED Bhaskar Sen's name as the next CMD in UBI. Mr Sen will assume charge at UBI in March this year, following retirement of the current chief SC Gupta.

Meanwhile, UBI executive director TM Bhasin has been tipped to join as the next CMD in Indian Bank on April 1. The ministry is expected to issue a notification soon to this end. Accordingly, there will be eight vacant CMD slots in 2010 which the shortlisted bankers will vie for.